India are shedding their over-dependency on Mandhana and Harmanpreet

With the conclusion of the women's tri-nation series in Colombo, it seems like India have reached a moment of clarity. It's something that the captain Harmanpreet Kaur and the head coach, Amol Muzumdar, have been working towards for a while. A year ago, India weren't entirely sure of the make-up of their batting line-up. Now, just as a home ODI World Cup is around the corner, their top seven is locked.

Colombo has arguably been the most challenging venue for India in the last six months, where batters' temperament and endurance were tested in the extreme heat. But they responded remarkably in this tri-series against Sri Lanka and South Africa. India posted at least 275 runs four out of five times, and that includes the 342 for 7 in the final. They are showing signs that they are no longer dependent on Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet for the bulk of their runs.

"Definitely proud of the entire team, the way we played today," Harmanpreet said. "Especially our batters, they played good cricket and that's what we discussed in the beginning that if we won the toss, we will bat and we will look for a really good total on the board and really happy the way we batted today."

"A lot of positives, especially the other batters the way they have batted, in the last game Jemimah [Rodrigues] had a knock of hundred, and Harleen [Deol] kept batting for the team and Pratika [Rawal] too and Deepti [Sharma]'s all-round performance and Sneh Rana's bowling efforts."

Over the past two weeks, India have shown the ability to ride out tough periods with the bat and make their moments of supremacy matter. The 3-0 loss to Australia in Mumbai last December might have been the wake-up call. Since then, India have played 11 ODIs and lost only one. This run has been built on a batting line-up that is pushing itself to new heights. In six out of the eight matches that they've had to set a total, they've made over 300.

In the series opener against Sri Lanka, when India were asked to chase a target of 148, they did so with nine wickets and nearly 10 overs to spare. Rawal scored an unbeaten fifty, and would go on to score another, continuing her extraordinary run of form since making her debut last December. She is averaging 63.80 after 11 ODIs.

Is this the way forward for India, without Shafali Verma? Maybe. Despite a strong showing at the Women's Premier League (WPL) earlier this year, Shafali was left out of the tri-series. She has also churned out runs with remarkable consistency in domestic cricket since being dropped from the India squad last November. But, for now, India are happy to let Rawal have her run.

There was a bond of trust when Rodrigues was handed a role in the middle order. It's the sort of trust that has survived setbacks.

She started her ODI career as a top-order batter, but two years ago, India needed something different from her. They knew Rodrigues, a player of talent and maturity, was capable of batting at any position. But she struggled to find her feet in this new position and had a forgettable 2024: she could muster only 329 runs in 12 innings, only one fifty-plus score.

The new year brought a new Rodrigues. She notched up her maiden ODI hundred against Ireland in January and followed it up with 245 runs in this tri-series - India's second-most productive batter behind Mandhana. Overall in 2025, she has 360 runs in seven innings. It is evident that she has worked on her strike rate (up to 115 this year from 91 last year) and fitness in the process.

"I just want to keep going. The main target is the World Cup," Rodrigues would say after her second ODI century, against South Africa, a few days ago. She went on to explain that "it's just the confidence I have and more than that, just me understanding my game. Usually, I used to play 4-5 dot balls, get panicked and throw my wicket. But now, I think that sense of calmness is there and you know, I can make [it] up. And at the same time, a lot of T20 cricket has helped me play in different leagues, in different conditions. It has helped me and given me a belief and a trust in myself. I know that in any condition and any situation, I am well able to deliver what the team requires."

Rodrigues is becoming India's rock in the middle order.

As far as the finishers are concerned, the team has been banking on Richa Ghosh, but they will be more than pleased with Deepti's 93 against South Africa earlier in this series. It was her first fifty-plus score in ODIs since her unbeaten 68 against England at Lord's in 2022, and India would be hoping that the senior allrounder carries this form forward.

The next big box that was ticked is India's No.3. After trying out Ghosh, Yastika Bhatia, Priya Punia, and D Hemalatha, Deol was slotted in at one-down during the home series against Australia last December. Since her comeback, she has played 14 innings and has done fairly well - 511 runs at an average of 39.30 including a match-winning century against West Indies. In this tri-series, Deol's top score of 47 came in Sunday's final against Sri Lanka.

Through all this, Mandhana kept doing Mandhana things, which doesn't come as a surprise anymore. Perhaps it's even underappreciated because of her mind-boggling consistency. Her 11th ODI century on Sunday propelled India to 342 for 7 in the title clash, which was too much for Sri Lanka as they eventually lost by a margin of 97 runs. She has accumulated 1260 ODI runs in 21 innings since the start of 2024, the most for a batter in this period. This includes six centuries and five fifties. The second best on this list is Hayley Matthews, with 851 runs.

Five different India batters made a score of fifty or more over the course of the tri-series. It is a welcome development for a team facing some more big tests.

India's next assignment will be a long tour of England in June-July where they are scheduled to play five T20Is and three ODIs in vastly different conditions compared to Colombo. But for now, they will be content having ticked a lot of boxes in the batting.